Feeling Book Guilt?

Had a great conversation the other day with a client. We were talking about all of the things that pile up and cause professional development guilt. We all know we need to keep growing so we don't fall behind, but it isn't easy to make time for all the things that seem important.

In my years as a coach, I've noticed a sort of "book guilt" crops up for professionals who believe that reading is the key to their personal growth. They start books, struggle to finish (life gets hectic for all of us), and then they have guilt. Book Guilt.

I read a lot, and I have a rolling backlog of half-finished books that can start to feel heavy too.

If you've got books hanging around, yelling at you from the bedside table, let me teach you my trick for catching up on all my reading. It's a way to end the book guilt and get current on my reading intentions.

First let's reject the assumptions that feed book guilt:

1. I can't get the most out of a book unless I read every page.
2. If I don't finish the book, it was a waste (of time or money).
3. If I don't finish the book it means I lack discipline.

3 Reasons to Not Read Every Word

But the value of reading a book does not come from reading every word. It comes from reading the right words for you, the words you can receive and use at that time. So before I tell you how to read every half-finished book you own this weekend (because I will), here are my 3 reasons to not read every word of a book before we've finished it.

  1. You get the most value right at the start.

The activation energy we open the first pages of a book with brings a sharpness to our focus, and allows us to pour excitement into the pages. Often, the introduction of any book gives you a feeling for the heart of the book, why it was written, as well as how the book will do/tell/teach you something that no other book like it will do. Between reading the intro, thoroughly reviewing the table of contents, and jumping into the first several chapters - you can often walk away with a fresh perspective on an idea, and get one new fact, system, strategy, or burst of inspiration.

If it helps, you can think of the 80/20 principle. Get 80% of the book's value out of the first 20% of it. The major thing that first 20% of the book shares is the author's perspective. One of the most powerful forces for change in our lives is perspective. If all you pull from a book is a fresh perspective, you have gotten some of the best value out of it. Don't let the freshness of an author's perspective die a slow death as you try to collect and memorize every last fact and diagram.

  2. Every book has an appointed time in your life.

In college one of my professors required us to read a paper* by C.S. Lewis called "On Myth." In it, he discussed the near-mystical relationship we have with different books at certain times in our lives. The mystery of ink and paper, and the phenomenon of a dozen people reading the same book, while having vastly different experiences with it. The interaction of who we are, what we are experiencing in our lives at the time, and an inner readiness to experience something powerful with the book creates a singular experience with that volume's unique content. This is why a book can "change your life." Lewis says that when a book does that, it becomes a myth to us. Any book we read can become a myth to us at different times in our lives. It could be a cookbook, young adult fiction, or classic business book that others pass over; yet when it enters your world and blends with who you are in that moment, you have a powerful experience that never really leaves you.

When that moment has passed, be free to take with it the special thing that it gave you. You simply cannot "get everything out of a book." Not every piece of it is meant for you, and only certain portions of it can truly impact your life in that moment. Receive the powerful thing it offers you...then release the rest of it. Open up your reading energy to receive the next book. By trying to schedule in "finishing a book" at some future time, you may prevent yourself from receiving the new book that is designed for that time in your life. Stop living on leftovers; let fresh ink into your life when it speaks to you.

  3. One usable idea is worth more than 100 details you can't remember.

Sometimes when our attention fails, it's because our brains have captured some thought that it wants to use right away, or chew on further. Taking that "one thing" away and applying it to your life is far more valuable than writing down a list of 20 things that you can't apply right away. You don't need list of facts to recite or a complicated school of thought that you'd have to look up your notes on in order to communicate it to someone else. Take that one burning idea, one burst of inspiration, one tweak to your strategy or system - and RUN with it! Once you've gotten one thing you can really use out of a book, don't feel guilty about putting the paper down and making the idea your own. Most authors put years into writing that book on your shelf. Don't berate your brain for being unable to metabolize years of research and use it in every area of your life. Trust your incredible brain to select the piece that you're ready to use. 

But that beings said, don't worry! I will help you finish every half-read book on your shelf this weekend! You don't need hours to do it - with the help of this system, most people can finish up to 25 books in about an hour or so.

Finish Reading Every Half-Read Book in Under 1 Hour

So right now, take a look at that shelf, stack, pile, or table full of books you "need to finish." Gather them from every part of your house, book bag, and bathroom (you know you read in there.) Open your Kindle and iBook libraries. Look at each item in turn and ask these 3 questions:

"What did you teach me?"

(No really. Ask the book what it taught you.)

"What's the one thing I would tell other people from this book?"

"What do I think makes this book different from others like it?"

If you can answer all 3 of those questions, then you have finished that book.

If you can answer those questions, you have gotten great value out of that book. If you've only read a couple of chapters and you're already able to answer those questions, then it just means you got value out of it really quickly! Congratulations! It you didn't finish it, then its time has likely passed. Take it to the reference bookshelf, return it to the library, or donate it. You have now finished it.

If you CAN'T answer all 3 of those questions, it means that it wasn't that book's time to enter your life. If you've opened its pages, glanced at its table of contents, and read at least 25 pages and cannot answer those questions, then it wasn't the book for you at the time you read it. It is officially stale to you now. You have finished that book.

When you get up from this exercise, you will have finished every half-read book you own! How does it feel? Consciously acknowledge to yourself that you're done, pat yourself on the back for getting value out of so many books in your life, and recognize that you really do finish what you start. Take your "newly finished" books to the reference bookshelf, return them to the person who lent them to you, or give them a new home.

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Notes:

*Unfortunately, I didn't keep my copy of Lewis' paper assigned to me in college. Since he wrote extensively on the topic of "myth," I have yet to unearth the specific article I refer to in my blog today. If I ever find it, I'll let you know!